If You Want to Walk on Water, You’ve to Get Out of the Boat

Today we are talking about one of the great stories of the New Testament. Jesus has sent his disciples on across the lake in a boat. The wind is against them, and so they have not made very much progress. (This is a sailboat, after all.)

About 3:00 in the morning, Jesus comes walking to them across the water. At first, they thought it was a ghost. What would you think?! Then Jesus speaks to them. To put their mind at ease, he says, “Fear not! It is I.” I love that King James English. But maybe Jesus spoke the Modern Version. Maybe he said, “Hey, guys! Don’t be afraid. It’s me!”

Then Peter did a crazy, impulsive thing. (Peter was always doing impulsive things. Do you remember when he cut the guy’s ear off? - Do you remember that?) Peter says, “OK, Jesus. If it’s really you, give me the word to walk out there with you.” Jesus responded, “Come on out!”

And, to everybody’s surprise, Peter jumps right out there. (Peter always acts first and thinks later.) And there he is walking across the water to Jesus.

Once he’s out there, Peter says to himself, “Hey! I’m walking on water!” But then he says to himself: “Whoa! Wait a minute! I’m walking on water. What’s going to happen to me?” And he starts to sink. It reminds me of Wile E. Coyote in those old Road Runner cartoons. Do you remember that? The coyote runs off a high cliff into mid air. He’s running through the air, doing fine; when, all of a sudden, he looks down. Whrrrr! He plummets.

Jesus says to Peter, “Oh, you of little faith!” He picks Peter up and he puts him back in the boat. Now, you and I may think that Peter was a terrible failure after this episode. But, let me remind you of something: For one glorious moment, Peter was walking on water. He was walking on water!! He was surfing without a surfboard!

There are several lessons for us at this point. First, we see in the Bible, Jesus is always doing things to get our attention. Sometimes, it is big, miraculous things like walking on water. Sometimes, it is small things. But Jesus is always trying to get our attention.

Why? That brings me to point number 2. Jesus has an adventure for you. It may not be walking on water, but God is seeking to get you out of your comfort zone, to a new step of faith and a new experience of blessing.

But, you know what? If you want to walk on water, you have to get out of the boat. If you want to know God’s blessings, you’ve got to trust him a little. I have really been struck by that point. (It’s the title of a book I read recently.) “If you want to walk on water, you’ve got to get out of the boat. God has a wonderful experience in mind for you, but you will never know if you stay in the boat.

There is Jesus, inviting you. What are some of the things that keep you from getting out of the boat? One is fear. We do not like to get out of our comfort zone. When my mother heard the title of this sermon, she said, “I am perfectly happy in the boat, thank you.” But let me tell you this: There is no faith hiding in your comfort zone. There is no blessing. There is no trusting God.

Jesus sees right through us. He knows your comfort zone. He knows your fear. That’s why his first words are: “Don’t be afraid!” But that’s not the only thing he says. Do you remember what else he says? He says, “It is I.” “It’s me, Jesus! If you will just leave your comfort zone for a minute, if you will just step out, I am here to catch you. I am here to lift you up!

Second, we stay in the boat, because we are “boat potatoes.” That’s right. “Boat potatoes.” Not “couch potatoes,” but “boat potatoes.” We Americans have developed this into a fine art. We have big, plush chairs that you can fall into, but you can’t get out of. And heaven help us if we had to walk across the floor to change the channel. We have the big screen TV. Remotes for every conceivable device. Mounds of munchies. Football games and talent shows every night. We are in a cocoon of comfort. We don’t want to move. No wonder our children are getting more obese and taking less initiative. And the rest of the world is starting to run past us.

We say: “I am so comfortable, down in the bottom of the boat, (watching TV and snacking). Don’t bother me!” But, look at what you are missing! God, the God who made you, has some great experiences meant just for you. Do you want to miss it? What a waste! To sleep away your time on this earth, when you could live! I’m talking about spiritual things here, not just physical.

Another thing that keeps us in the boat is failure. We hate failure so much. We avoid coming anywhere near it. And that avoidance is killing us, because failure helps us to grow. And, let me tell you, the devil uses failure to keep us away from God. How many times have I heard people say, “Yeah I trusted God one time, and it didn’t work out. I never will forget; it was for a few days back in 1998.”

Let me tell you something. You are going to fail sometimes. I know it hurts. But that’s how we grow. Think of the human body. We stay alive because new cells replace old cells. Every day. Every minute. The old cells fail. New cells come and take their place. This happens for people of every age. We cannot grow. We cannot even live unless this happens. People who trust God learn how to manage failure. They learn, with God’s help and God’s strength, how to live through it. How to grow from it. Do you think Peter’s life was worse because he sank? I think his life would always be richer from that moment of standing on the water with Jesus.

Some people do not step out of the boat because they cannot bear to lose control. They say: “I can control my life here in the boat. I believe what I want to. I do what I want to do. I’m not going to get mixed up in any of that crazy religious stuff. That’s for losers. People who don’t have a life!”

I will say this. God does not force himself on you. You can ignore him if you want to. And ironically, you can’t know God just by being yourself. You have to give up a piece of yourself to give God room to come in. The sad thing is: There are a lot of people, even church people, who will never know God, because they are not willing to give up themselves.

But think of what a difference it makes when you open up yourself, and let the Lord come in. Before, you were without God. Now, you are coming to know God. God’s love blessing you. God’s power giving you strength. You do give up something. It’s true. But you get so much more in return.

I want to add one warning here. Walking on water, at Christ’s invitation, is not the same as being a daredevil. There are some people who just like to do crazy, impulsive, dangerous things. They don’t wait for the Lord to speak to them. They dive way out of the boat and into the water. They usually hit their head on the rocks underneath. Is that your story? Sometimes it’s mine. Water-walkers are those who discern Christ’s calling before they act. They take the risk for his sake, not for their own thrill.

So, what am I saying today? I’m saying: Think of it. Walking on water. God is inviting you to step to some places where you have never been before.

But, you’ve got to trust. You’ve got to get up out of the boat. You can’t walk with Christ if you’re hiding down in there. You’ve got to realize who it is who is inviting you. It’s Jesus. It’s the power of God almighty.

But you’ve got to take the step. Do you remember the Indian Jones movie?... He is in a cave standing on the edge of a precipice, over a huge, bottomless pit, an abyss. And his secret guidebook, with the key to getting through there alive, tells him to step forward. He stops at the edge, too frightened to go forward. He is not willing to step forward and fall to sure death. But his father tells him, “Indiana, you’ve got to go ahead and step out.” When Indiana objects that such action would be sure doom, the father replies: “You’ve got to have faith. You’ve got to take the step!” Summoning all his courage, Indiana Jones lifts his foot out over the death pit and steps forward. From out of nowhere, a step flies up under his feet, and bears him safely across.

My friend, you’ve got to take that step. You can’t walk with God while you’re hiding in the boat. But when you do step out, Christ is there to lift you up.

Let’s pray: O God, we hear your voice calling us. We see the wonderful places where Jesus is walking. Oh, but it’s so comfortable here in the boat. It’s so hard to get out of my comfort zone. I’m am so afraid of failing. I am so afraid to let go and really trust you. But Lord, help me to take that step. Let me know what it’s like to be lifted up by you. Amen.